Since the beginning of the week, the capital of the EU, Belgium, where the administrative center of the European Union is located, Brussels, has been renouncing its strict anti-code rules. The country is lifting several restrictive entry restrictions for tourists. However, the rules remain firm. In addition, Belgium was the first to introduce safety measures for a new disease – that is, monkeypox, found in the neighboring Netherlands.
Also read: What is known today about the outbreak of “monkeypox” and how it can affect tourism
Thus, the Federal Public Service of Belgium (FPS) for Health, Food Chain Safety, and the Environment have announced that from Monday the yellow code, which has been in force in Belgium since March 2022, will be terminated by decision of the Advisory Committee. The move means that tourists from non-EU countries can now enter Belgium for secondary purposes, such as tourism.
At the same time, the authorities also abolished the obligation to perform tests on the first and seventh days of arrival, as well as the obligation to remain in quarantine for ten days. You will also not be required to complete a passenger search form before traveling to Belgium or present a valid certificate of vaccination, recovery, or test results.
However, the measures will be taken against tourists who “come from a country with a new variant of the virus or cause concern,” said Prime Minister Alexander De Kroo in a press release announcing changes related to the coronavirus. The mass regime has also surrendered its position not everywhere – masks have been abolished in public transport and other places, but preserved in medical institutions and “lively and crowded places.”
Until now, Belgium has had some of the strictest restrictions on entry through the coronavirus compared to other EU and Schengen countries. By the way, Belgium was the first European country to introduce measures to combat the new “famous” disease: the Belgian Risk Assessment Team (RAG) has introduced a three-week quarantine for people with symptoms of monkeypox. There is a risk – three new cases have recently been reported in the neighboring Netherlands. The source is clear – it’s sex tourism: all three participated in a gay fetish festival called Darklands.